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Finance Committee Notes: GPUS Finance
Committee Conference Call facilitator-Jeff,
note taker-Doug, Timer-Jake Approval of minutes of Sept 8 meeting with one change from Bill. Jo will send out the approved minutes with the corrections. 1. Discussion of document sent from Jeff on monthly expenses shows we need to raise/pay $20,753 per month as a minimum. This is $249k per year.This is a skeleton budget to keep the existing 3 staff at the current pay level and the infrastructure intact including the DC office. This represents the hard fixed costs. No fundraising expenses are in this number except the fundraising directors salary is included. Doug has noted that we have operated at $25k per month average for the year so far for expenses not including the convention. 2. Jo says that a direct mail program though a professional firm should cost $480k next year and bring in $730k, a net income of $250k. This program projection will cost $40k per month. This would potentially change Kara's job to doing personal solicitations and events only and exclude direct mail. This would need to be taken to the SC and personnel committee. Or Kara's job could also include merchandise and overseeing the direct mail firm. This needs further discussion. 3. Kara has sent out a first draft for the 2005 fundraising projection showing $500k in income. This is only a first draft. Sustainer income looks like $120k per year and $135k in personal solicitations and was not included in the first draft so needs to be added to this income and would be sufficient in itself to fund the minimal needs cited by Jeff's document. Direct mail and merchandise and events would generate income above the minimal needs. 4. Database and Income reporting systems - Doug Jeff & Emily (lead person for the database working group) Doug proposes a conference call to demonstrate the db to the committee. We could use one of the fincom call times to do this. Hopefully David spitzley can be on the call and he is busy now but Emily will try to work out this with David. Everyone will need Access installed on their computer and download the db file from the server. Emily can send out instructions on how to download from the server. GET THE DB UP AND RUNNING ON YOUR COMPUTER LONG BEFORE THE CONFERENCE CALL! When the call starts there is not time to solve problems with uploading or opening the file. 5. Committee Mission Policies and Procedures- Bill - not much to report 6. Revisions to current Fiscal Policy - Rules and Procedures - Jake - not much to report. After SC retreat there will be more to come. 7. 2005 committee budgets: Jeff suggests that we tell the committees that they have $300 or $500 per month or more token amounts to spend instead of asking them how much they would like. The committees would then budget that set amount. This would deviate from what we did last year. In the past we have asked for a more open ended budget from the committees. However, some committees don't need a budget, and others like the CC need a larger budget. Also, we don't have a platform or convention committee this year. Another idea is to go back to last year's budget or last year's budget requests and apportion that amount or a percentage of that amount. We don't want committees asking for inflated amounts with the expectation that they actually want less. Jake suggests we go through and fine tune the committees ' actual expenses from 04 and come up with 05 budgets. 8 Caucus & Network Fundraising as well as PAC formations- general discussion. Two parts to it -- are they part of USGP or independent orgs; and what are the fundraising policies. Are the caucuses going to be included in USGP's budget or independent. Jeff suggests that if they are independent orgs they not claim to be associated with USGP. Doug suggests that we stay with the current two tier budget that allows caucuses to raise money for designated purposes and keeps the caucuses within USGP but allows them flexibility to raise money. We can reserve or designate tier two money for committees or caucuses that raise it. Mark has a concern allowing caucuses to raise money in that could they raise unlimited money and do they need approval of the SC to spend it. Caucuses might cry foul if they cant spend their money freely without approvals. We need a fundraising policy for this to address possible competing or conflicting fundraising activities. If the caucuses are still a part of USGP there are no additional costs to the caucuses or USGP other that an increase in transactions fro the accountant and treasurer, if the caucuses were independent orgs they would need to do accounting, treasurer duties and FEC reporting for themselves. Note that none of the committees or caucuses have raised tier two income. For 05 we could either assign an amount that some committees are expected to raise or we could ask committees for a plan if they want to raise money. Jeff is going to make up a proposed budget for next week with minimal budgets and with tier two amounts or requests for tier two amounts from committees. 9 Next
meeting: Wed. Sept 22, 7pm EST.
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